Father's Day
by CraftyNotepad
Summary: Have you noticed how Lloyd's never really warmed to Keely Teslow?
1. Family Backyard Picnic

Disclaimer: I don't own Phil of the Future. I just love the series!

**Father's Day**

"CURTIS! No Squirting Ketchup! Pim, help Curtis with the condiments."

"Why do I gotta --"

"Please, Pim."

"(Can't I have any fun?)"

"What was that?"

"Nothin', Pappy. Curtis, maybe I better dress up your burger for you, Buddy."

"But Pim tell Curtis --"

"LA-LA-LAH-LAHH! Clamp it, Caveman. Just climp it."

"Pim certainly has mellowed over the last year of our engagement, Phil."

"And you can tell this how, 'xactly?"

"Easy. There's only catsup on his burger. Not a drop of his own blood. Not even a hint of a threat of amputation."

Keely earned a smile for being witty. As good as the burgers and hot dogs smelled on the Diffys' backyard barbeque, his appetite was only for Keely and she made a point of staying his stomach from grumbling. Their decision to stay in the 21st Century was only surpassed by their decision to become a couple.

"Curtis, those pickles are for everyone. Spit some out!"

"Never mind; he can have my share."

"Ours, too."

"Curtis lucky. Everyone loves Curtis," spouted a nearly weepy Cro-Magnon.

Lloyd announced, "Burgers are ready. Bring you plates. Yes, Curtis, you can have yours first." Maybe it was the male affinity for the BBQ-gene, but Lloyd was actually competent on the outdoor range. Personally, his wife was a little jealous and attributed his success to his lucky apron and lobster claw BBQ mitts. It was just that he was so "Lloyd," going on and on about how great a cook he was when all he was doing was pulling dead ground muscle off the fire before completely cremating it. Barbara Diffy didn't see what the big deal was about or why everyone else uttered such sounds of delight while they chowed down, and did they all have to compliment the cook? Really?

Barbara played with her potato chips. One looked like the spa pool in their old living room, right down to the hole in the middle where the fountain would rise up. Why was nobody touching her potato salad?

Despite this wallowing, everyone was actually in good spirit seated at the the wooden picnic table. Phil, Keely, and Curtis on one side; Pim wedged in between her parental overseers on the opposite side, baring her escape. Good weather for a picnic, promising that Pim would be up to no good later on. She was just on the look out for her next opportunity.

There were a passel of good memories the young lovers had tallied up in the backyard on that picnic table. Homework, a filmed documentary, a double date with Keely's last meddling victims, and then there was their shared attempts to teach Curtis 21st Century etiquette, and here they were making good memories yet again. Speaking of etiquette ...

"Don't wolf down your food like that. Chew! Or it will get caught in your throat and you'll choke to death, Pim. You're just like your father." Pim looked up with doe eyes, begging innocence, but the ketchup running down both corners of her mouth made her appear anything, but. That her mouth didn't possess enough of a cavity for any sort of communication other than gutteral completely melted her attempted snow job. Showing he had evolved, Curtis stuck out his tongue at Pim. She'd get him back for that tonight.

"Who wants to play Twister later?"

"Twister! Twister! Twister! Twist, twist, twist."

"Curtis volunteers," Keely translated needlessly. "Oops." Her phone chimed. "Hi Mom! I'm at Phil's. Why not? WHEN? Oh, o-okay, Mommy. I'll wait for your call. I love you." Keely looked smaller. Phil had been searching her eyes the moment her tone changed; now he offered an arm for support and she collapsed, not melted, into his embrace. His parents now were dealing with Phil's eyes seeking answers from them. Even the remaining diners were in shock.

"Mrs. Diffy? Can I stay overnight? Maybe for a while?"

"You know you don't even have to ask, Keely. What is it?"

"He's back. My dad is back."


	2. Frank Teslow Returns

**Author's Note: This is a storyline that I've pitched to a few writers over time; none of whom took me up on it, so while I'm using it to get some practice it size and pacing for my Curtis of the Future story (still coming!). Boris, I haven't forgotten your P.A.D. suggestion. I just finished settling on the configuration of the mockup. It'll be coming!**

Disclaimer: I don't own Phil of the Future. I just love the series!

**Father's Day**

Adorned with a fresh pillow and blanket, the cozy couch in the living room was already prepared for Keely tonight. No one was watching the movie being played; instead, they were waiting for answers that just weren't coming.

"I thought you daddy was dead."

_WHHAPP!_ Phil's aim had his sister eating a throw pillow sandwich. It was returned in kind, along with Pim's tattling, "Dad, Cheesenut threw a pillow in my face and he's ugly."

"Cheesenut ... I mean "Phil," stop throwing pillows at your sister."

"(And stop being ugly.)"

"And stop being ugly, Phil."

"(Cheesenut.)"

"Cheesenut."

Barbara bopped Pim in the puss with the pillow for taking advantage of her impressionable accomplice.

"Not dead. Gone. Left. Now he's back."

"What Girlie do?"

"Mom told me to sit tight, Curtis." Looking up, Keely laughed as Curtis tried to push himself deeper into the chair. "I mean, to stay here, for now. I think she's going to try what she tried last time, to convince him that I don't live with her anymore."

"You always have a home with us, Keels," comforted her boyfriend.

"Yeah, you practically live here anyway."

SWISH! Another pillow went sailing past Pim's head.

"Hey, I was helping."

"I know. That was for making me call Phil "Cheesenut" earlier."

"Nice one, Dad, but you have to work on your aim."

"Thanks, Phil. I know, I'm just not getting the control with these throw pillows that I do when your mother and I pillow fight in the bedroom."

"Lloyd!"

"I'll explain it later."

"No, you won't."

"No, I won't."

"Bernoulli Principle, Dad?"

"Exactly."

"Lloyd."

"What were we talking about?"

Keely cracked a smile. She loved her adorably wacky surrogate family. Even Pim. Grabbing tonight's pillow, she hugged it close to her stomach like a child with a teddy bear. Keely looked vulnerable, stressed out more than a Messhersmidt's mid-term. Mostly though, she was worried for her mother.

"Frank, she's not here. It's time for you to leave before I call the police."

Frank didn't offer any response. He just walked through the house as if he still owned it, studying the walls and knick-knack shelves. Yes, pussycats galore. How they once came in handy for terrorizing his wife and daughter to obey him. That, midnight whispers while they would be considered safe in their beds, the burns that long sleeves concealed even in summer. Frank was one sick puppy. He had abused the people he should have protected and cherished most of all in this world and by talking to him, you wouldn't be able to perceive that he cared about them more than toys. His eyes stopped, finding what he was searching for. "Not here, huh? What's this?"

Mandy's mind went blank, then dark.


	3. Midnight Stroll

**Author's Note: 5 unique readers from the States and, hello, one from Australia. Welcome!**

**You've heard of "BO-GO," surely -- "Buy One, Get One (free!)." Let me just state right now that reviewers for this chapter will receive a coupon good for half-off on the next two following chapters BOGHOTNT (Buy One, Get Half-Off The Next Two). Yes, yes, I have to work on my acronyms, or maybe my prizes. Perhaps some come-one specials from the Cocoa Palace,Otto's Pink Pig, and the Pickford Town Mall (bring your Preferred Shopper card!)?**

**How many chapters in length is this story? Just a guess, but somewhere between two and six. Here's number 3. (Don't bet on three. Two, either.)**

Disclaimer: I don't own Phil of the Future. I just love the series!

**Father's Day**

**oh, and it's Chapter 3**

Phil couldn't sleep. He hurt when Keely hurt. Not so much so for Pim, but Keely, definitely. They were both women in his life, both he could nearly claim as family, but there was a distinct difference. Keely was innocent; while the family photos of Pim included her mugshots. The floorboard creaked under his feet as he crept out of his bed and made his way across Curtis's repairs, still awaiting "sanding down." He retrieved his robe from the back of his bedroom door and entered the hall -- right into the path of his calculating sibling.

"Sleepwalking, Lover Boy?"

"Not now, not tonight, Pim."

"Why doesn't anyone get how sensitive I am, or at least, can be? I care, sort of. Go, go, console your better-half-to-be, and fix your hair. Hasn't the girl had enough of a scare today?" Pim's fingers slapped Phil's Alfalfa back down into place.

A look of thanks, quiet ruffle of his hair back out of place so he could sort it out his own self, and he was back down the staircase to check on his Keely. He heard noises downstairs, the sound of glass striking glass, gentle banging -- Curtis was raiding the refrigerator once more.

"PHIL?"

"DAD?"

Lloyd Diffy wasn't so different from the caveman living under the leaky roof of his garage. Both were ruled by their stomachs, especially in the middle of the night. Tonight, his father seemed intent on consuming half of the leftovers from the barbecue with manners not so far apart from prehistoric times, either. At least he was using a plate instead of hand to mouth.

"It's late, Phil. Hungry? There's plenty."

"I'm worried about Keely, Dad. I don't know what to do."

"Son, it's not like she's your responsibility. You're just dating."

"Engaged."

"Really? When did that happen?"

Phil loved his dad, but sometimes ...

Leaving his Dad to his late night protein fix, Phil returned to his mission while his father whispered his congratulations. For the first time since that phone call, his lady looked peaceful. He came to talk, to understand, to solve, but how could he possibly transport her from such serenity to her worst nightmare? He couldn't. Whatever secrets she still had would wait until morning and when she was ready. He caught himself as he reached to brush the tangle of blonde cobwebs from her face, turned and left her unkempt and undisturbed.

His mother ran into him on the stairs, literally, on her search for her missing bedmate. Phil was happy to point her in the right direction before she tuned in on the concern ingrained in his features. Empathy, Barbara possessed this ability of feeling the joys and sorrows of her loved ones. As Phil felt for Keely, his mother felt for her offspring, but with both the reserve of a mother knowing she had to let them make their own decisions, as well as, someone who grew up with the reality of time travel. Like her husband, she wasn't one taken in by an immediate crisis. This was all history to Lloyd, and he felt no more compassion for someone hurt in front of him than you and I do when we read about people who died hundreds of years ago. This was all just a matter of history to Phil's father and mother; still, she witnessed her son's sadness.

"Don't worry, Phil. This will all work out. Just try to get some sleep so you'll be there for Keely in the morning."

Mothers. Do they do anything without offering advice? Phil kissed her goodnight and trudged back to his bed, ignoring the light shimmering from underneath Pim's bedroom door. He just didn't have the energy tonight. Maybe Keely would help everything make sense in the morning. Without pulling back the covers, he collapsed into his bed, the pillow molding itself about his noggin. Sleep; what a wonderful invention.


	4. While You Were Sleeping

**Author's Note: Memory lane, want to take a trip? The first lesson you folks taught me is that you like your Pheely. Lesson number two, Phil of the Future readers like to be fed regularly. Um, that's about it, except a warm welcome to Belglum. Welcome aboard!**

Disclaimer: I don't own Phil of the Future. I just love the series!

**Father's Day**

**Chapter 4 -- While You Were Sleeping**

Phil overslept. He didn't even hear the pounding on the front door waking Keely and his parents. Curtis was sleeping off a full stomach in his "cave," and Pim ... oh, Pim. Keely awoke in a fright, only to find herself listening to her father's voice on the other side of the Diffys' door. By the time Phil woke up, Keely was gone. Her father hadn't listened to her pleas to stay with her soulmate; instead, she had been snatched away back to her own home with her father's rule of never allowing her to set foot in the Diffys' abode again. Imagine that -- a teenager on the cusp of becoming an adult having no say in such an important part of her life being torn away from her. What's next? Would Frank Diffy move taking his "family" with him, probably without a word as to where they were headed or how to contact them?

Phil didn't take the news well, which means his mother didn't take it well. Curtis wanted to go fetch back Phil's woman for him. Pim, she was still considering her options. On the one hand, being spared Blondie's chipper attitude was refreshing after all these years, there would be more bacon residing on Pim's breakfast plate in the future, and one blonde in the house was really enough. Her brother's hollow eyes remained unfocused. Sure, she said she'd always wished for that, even embossed it on the family Christmas cards, but to have to live with it? Uggh! Day in and day out? Say what she would -- and Pim did -- about her brother's poor choice in women, the squeeze did keep him off his sister's back and out of her cunning plans. Yes, little Miss Sunshine did have her plus points, but getting her out of her predicament would be such a bother, and Pim was busy closing a deal on a warehouse filled to the rafters with antique Applachian foot warmers. It was a matter of priorities, she surmised.

The elder Diffys tried to make their first born understand that they had no choice; his beloved was still a minor and her parents had the right to take her home. Mandy Teslow had accompanied Keely's dad to the Diffys', only saying "please." Frank did the rest of the talking. Ordering really, with a strong, calm voice tempered by his determination to have his way, as the absence of eye contact by Keely's mother attested to.

Enraged, terrified for Keely and Mandy, Phil races back upstairs for his Wizrd. With it, he'll set thing right as Keely and he have done so many times before. Where is it?

Barbara and Lloyd had agreed that this man was too dangerous to deal with, the kind who'd stop at absolutely nothing to have what he desired. They secured the family's Wizrd's away, along with the skyaks, omnimatic grabiffiers, insta-morphs and even the remaining contents of Thompson's Nose Modeling kit away in the Time Flyer's strong box.

"Pim, ..."

"Forget it. Mom and Pop clean me out, too. Even took my bottle of sabotage glue. Corn cobs, I've never been so disarmed."

"Keely..."

"... will live the life she would have if we had never come, or returned for Curtis. This is the way it was supposed to be, Big Brother. You know this."

"Mom ..."

"... did all she could. She stood nose to nose with that a-hole, but in the end, it just didn't matter. He seemed to sense that she wouldn't call the police into this."

"Dad ..."

"... is probably busy tuning up the time machine. Might as well start packing. There's no reason to stay here any longer, is there? Hand me those Academy Awards, will ya? Phil? Phil?"

Half-crushed, half-dazed, Phil made his way out the back door and redirected himself to his father's whistling. Pim had called it. There was their progenitor busying his hands with the time engine.

"Dad?"

"Hi Phil. Oh ... hi Phil. Yeah, right. Kind of busy right now," he responded, never lifting his head from his attention on the time engine.

Phil needed a plan.


	5. The Great Escape

**Author's Note: Uh, we'll talk later.**

Disclaimer: I don't own Phil of the Future. I just love the series!

**Father's Day**

**Chapter 5 -- The Great Escape**

It was a dark and stormy night ...

... rain immediately pelting her as she emerged outside Keely slipped out through the kitty door in the kitchen to get help, only to feel powerful hands clamp 'round her ankles and pull her back in screaming. Long out of tears, her mother screamed through her gag.

Meanwhile, back at the garage, Phil had assembled his team. Pim, the brains, Curtis, the muscle; and Danny Dawkins for reconnaissance and distraction.

"How about code names?" asked Little Scorpion.

Phil groaned, "No code names."

Dawkins sighed.

Phil didn't have a clue as to how to save Keely, but then that's the plus side for having Pim for a sinister sister. Dramatically, Pim rolled out her battle plans and started placing miniature figurines of the rescue rangers and their targets for tonight. "First, Phil will be positioned behind the north fence while Curtis and Danny crawl through the tunnel under the sidewalk --"

"Uh, Pim, how are you going to get a tunnel under the sidewalk?"

Pim stared down her inquisitor. "Just because I'm agreeing to help doesn't mean that I'm going to admit to anything. Let's just say that there's a tunnel already there."

"Under the sidewalk?"

Pim gave him a look which meant she wasn't going to dwell on this. "Now, I'll be --"

"In your room grounded for a year," Mrs. Diffy finished her daughter's sentence. Everyone looked up. "Danny, I think you better go home now."

"Yes, Ma'am." Scooping up his backpack, he didn't even glance Pim's direction for her consent to leave.

"I'm going to count to three and then everyone is going to be in their beds. We all care about Keely, but this is extremely dangerous. No one is going anywhere tonight. I still have my Wizrd and I'm not afraid to use it. One ... two ... "

She didn't have to make it to three. Like her husband, Barbara gave her children a great deal of freedom to make their own decisions in life, but when Mom and Dad put their foot down, that was law in the Diffy family. It's not that Barb didn't care about Keely, but she had years of conditioning protecting her own off-spring, even thought they emerged from natal pods and sported NIRDays, instead of birthdays. Truth was, for all her bluster, Frank terrified her and she couldn't even imagine allowing her babies near that monster.

Of course, none of that was important to Phil. Using his plan (his sister's actually) had been kahboshed. Solving trouble was always easier with Keely around. He needed a bright idea and he needed it fast.

"Lights out," commanded his mother as she flipped the switch.

Keely ...

**A.N. -- don't get discouraged! One more chapter to go!**


	6. Barbecue Buddies

**Author's Note: My gratitude to my two reviewers, SlickNickShady and Boris Yeltsin. FanFiction would be a much better creation if all readers followed your example. Cookies to you both! This is the concluding chapter. Nice to finally post a version of this.**

Disclaimer: I don't own Phil of the Future. I just love the series!

**Father's Day**

**Chapter 6 -- Barbecue Buddie**s

It was the rattling of the latch on the backyard gate in the rear of the driveway that caught Frank's attention; someone was back there. He grabbed a butcher's cleaver from the wall, ordered the women in his life to be silent or else, and peaked out the from behind the curtains before venturing outside in search of any trespassers.

"What the --"

"There was that guy I saw yesterday, Lyle Diffy, yeah, that's him. but a BBQ? Why is he in MY backyard wheeling about a barbecue? Do I have a BBQ?"

Mandy and her daughter shot one another looks of hope. Then again, it was Lloyd.

Lloyd spotted Frank coming outside, but he didn't see the sharpened steel tucked in the back of his waistband.

"Howdy Neighbor. Beautiful day for a barbecue, just perfect."

"Listen Lyle, I don't know w--"

"Lloyd," he corrected him, "Lloyd Diffy, at your service. Just being neighborly. You seemed a little stressed out at my house yesterday, so I knew just what you needed to make you happy and relaxed," Lloyd seemed phenomenally relaxed leaning against the family BBQ. He started dusting off the top of the metal hood, in that puttering around way Phil's father has.

"Lloyd. This is private property. You need to leave."

"No trouble at all. This is the least I could do, Frank. It's 'Frank,' right? We've known Keely and Mandy for what seem like ages now. 'Perfect timing,' yes, that's what I told my wife, Barbara. Keely's dad comes back into town and what better time to pay Mandy back for that nice lunch she had us over for than to come over here and have a sit down with her better half."

"That's real thoughtful, um, Lyle, but Mandy's tied up at the moment and Keely's --"

"Oh, you don't have to explain about teenagers. Got two of my own. I love them dearly, but they, especially my daughter, can be a handful."

"Exactly, so if you don't mind --"

"Still, (sigh) being a dad -- it's all I ever wanted it to be. Well, mostly. Remember how your daughter idolized you when she was knee-high? They grow up so fast. Before you realize it, the same little princess who wanted to marry you when she grew up now barely offers up a hug a year. I miss her coming to me for the answers to all her problems, like I could do anything. I'm just a dad; I can't solve everything in their lives ..."

Lloyd goes on and on. Try all he can, Frank's efforts to get him to leave amount to naught. Police? Lloyd didn't seem bothered by the idea of Frank calling in a black and white in the least. Mr. Diffy would probably just throw on a couple more burgers on the grill and chatted with the badges until they started to ask questions Frank didn't want asked. It was time to play another card.

"Say, Linc --"

"Yes?"

"Keely and I got real close last night, lots of catching up to do. She had some really intriguing news items about what's been going on in town while I've been away. She's been spending a lot of time over at your house, she tells me."

For the first time, Lloyd looked uneasy. Lasted about two skipped heartbeats, then his composure returned, but not before Frank Teslow had found the chink in Lloyd's armor.

"Bet she told you she and my boy, Phil, are now an item. Makes a dad feel kind of old, doesn't it, Frank?"

"Not really, Lewis."

"Sorry, I meant a 'real' father."

"Past time for you to have left, Larry." Frank reached behind him for his cleaver.

Still nervously dusting and polishing, Lloyd retreated behind his BBQ. "Yeah, real dads know that their family come first in all things ..." He could see something in Frank's hand coming out from behind his back. "... and I've been around a long time, Frank. You wouldn't believe what I've seen. Funny thing is, I've seen fellows like you calling themselves 'Father' before. More, I've seen that look before, the one Mandy was wearing when you both came to our front door yesterday retrieving Keely. Always means the same thing, no matter the who, where, or when." Something shiny was catching the sunlight from behind his neighbor now, something metal.

"Lucas, you really should have barbecued at home today. Minded your own business, and just looked after your own family. Big mistake."

"Oh, I'm not -- oh, ha-ha, I see how you'd -- nah, I didn't come over here to barbecue, Frankie. No, no, you're mistaken. I'm here looking after my family," and with that, Lloyd opened the BBQ lid facing Frank and activated the Time Crumpler Component. He'd spent yesterday building up a charge for it, before ripping it out from the center of the time engine. Keely was right, he thought. It did look like a fancy, glowing blender.

Instinctively, Frank had jumped back, expecting -- he didn't know, exactly. Lloyd, he'd measured up as a goof-ball and a coward, but still, some kind of attack when he had lifted the cover of the grill. Confronted by an overgrown Oster blender made Teslow chuckle and take his time with his cutting edge. "You crazy -- you're nuts, you know that?"

"I've been called worse. Actually, coming from you, I'll take that as a compliment. I am nuts -- about my family, Frank. They're my whole life. I don't care what they think about me. They need to be safe and happy. They need -- Frank, I wouldn't throw that."

Velocity Field, gotta love it. Klutzy as he is, Mr. Diffy had no trouble stepping aside at hyperspeed before the cleaver left Frank's hand to tumble toward Lloyd. A moment later, a time vortex emerged behind Frank and began pulling him in. For the first time in decades, Frank begged for help, for pity, for another chance.

"Frankly, I'd like to, Frank, I really would; maybe it's even the right thing to do. Not going to happen, though. Thing is, I'm a father, Frank. I protect my family, and I just recently realized that Keely isn't just another friend of Phil's; she's family, which means Mandy is family, too."

"And me, I'm Mandy's husband, Keely's father. I'm family, too."

"Where's your family right now, 'Dad?'"

It was his eyes that gave him away, glancing toward the house, yes, but distastefully. His face went all sour and he started to shout out something that might have made even Pim blush as he was devoured into the time hole. He'd be back, of course, as soon as the time donut finished up his little field trip. Lloyd checked the Crumpler's settings one more time. Good. Frank wouldn't be hurting anyone where he was visiting. One more thing to do. Lloyd turned off the Time Crumpler. That was all he had to do to collapse the donut hole and trap Frank with company even more cold blooded than he was. As for Lloyd, klutsy, dweebish, perpetually lost Lloyd, whistling, he closed the lid on his trusty BBQ and went to find the newest members of his family. After all, there's no prouder moments for a loving dad than when his family grows. Now, that's a true Father's Day.


End file.
